“The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”
Genesis 6:5 (ESV)
Each January when I go to the gym, I notice that it is packed with people. The treadmills and ellipticals are occupied as are the strength-training machines. People begin the New Year with noble goals and great ambitions. But by February it is a different story.
I am one of these well-intentioned souls. I am determined to lose weight, exercise more diligently, and generally form better habits. But despite my noble efforts, I stepped on the scale yesterday and gained weight! Why is that? Why is it so difficult to follow through consistently on the things we know we ought to do?
This is the human condition. And it is the consequence of sin and death entering Adam’s family as we saw in Genesis 3. From that defining moment in Eden, over the next ten generations, things went from bad to worse. The problems with mankind were not merely about him failing to do the good he wanted to do. Rather, man had become increasingly wicked and violent to the point that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. God felt sorry that He even made man. Therefore, He determined to destroy the people whom He had created.
Do you see parallels with what is happening in the world today? Jesus said that in the last days lawlessness will abound and the love of many will grow cold (Matthew 24:12). He also compared the days of Noah with the time immediately before His Second Coming.
“And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.”
Luke 17:26–27 (NKJV)
In the days of Noah, wickedness increased to the point that God had to bring judgment. It will be the same way just before the Day of the LORD when God judges the earth.
“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.”
Genesis 6:8 (NKJV)
One man stood out from his culture and found favor with God, Incidentally, this is the first time in Scripture that the word “grace” appears. It is against the backdrop of man’s wickedness and God’s impending judgment, but God bestows grace on one man whom he chooses, and because of Noah we all live today.
Against the backdrop of sin, people are still finding favor with God today. God still bestows grace on the ones whom He chooses. Just as He saved Noah and his family from impending judgment, so He wants to save you. He does not want anyone to be destroyed but wants everyone to repent (2 Peter 3:9). That means changing your mind about whom you are going to serve. Will you serve yourself or the One who created you by believing in His only Son, Jesus Christ? There is no other way for us to find grace in the eyes of the LORD and to be saved from this corrupt world and from the judgment to come.
By faith Noah made a difference and saved the world. God only knows what amazing things He can do through you!
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